That was November 1996 and it was the last time Pierre saw Murdock, who was then just 25 years old.

She reported her youngest sister missing in 1997, and seven years later received a visit from members of the Missing Women Task Force.

"They told me that they had found her DNA at the [Pickton] pig farm. It made me feel really sad, and I thought I had cried enough," Pierre said.

Murdock is the 30th woman on the official police list of 65 missing women to be linked through DNA testing to the Robert (Willie) Pickton serial killer investigation.

Pierre said police asked her not to tell anyone about the development until the conclusion of Pickton's first trial, which ended over a week ago with the former Port Coquitlam pig farmer being convicted on six counts of second-degree murder.

The Missing Women Task Force confirmed Wednesday that Murdock's DNA was located, but Staff Sgt. Wayne Clary would say nothing further because Pickton is facing a possible second trial on 20 other murder charges.

The task force continues to investigate the whereabouts of the women who are still listed as missing. Clary said it will ultimately be up to Crown prosecutors to decide if there is sufficient evidence to charge Pickton with any additional murder counts -- including Murdock's -- before his second trial begins.

Prosecutors and defence lawyers have until Jan. 8 to decide whether to appeal Pickton's second-degree murder convictions from the first trial.

A date for his second trial, should it proceed, will be discussed in B.C. Supreme Court on Jan. 24. Pickton has pleaded not guilty.

The task force searched Pickton's two Port Coquitlam properties for most of 2002 and 2003, seizing 235,000 pieces of evidence for DNA testing.

So far, RCMP labs have located the DNA of at least 30 women whose names are on the police poster of 65 women missing from the Downtown Eastside: The six women he was convicted of killing; the 20 women at the centre of his second trial; and four more women -- including Murdock -- for whom charges have not been laid.

In addition, the tally of possible victims also includes four more women who police have been unable to identify yet. The remains include a rib and heel bone of a victim dubbed "Jane Doe" that were found buried on Pickton's farm.

A large number of the evidence exhibits sent to the labs are still being tested today, which means more relatives could receive visits from police with news about missing loved ones.

Police discovered on Pickton's farm some partial remains of the six women he was convicted of killing; a publication ban prohibits the media from reporting what police found in relation to the 20 women linked to Pickton's second trial.

Pierre said police would not tell her what they found bearing her sister's DNA.

"They wouldn't even tell my mom... because of the next trial," she said. "She wanted to have a memorial service."

Pierre said she is hopeful there will be a criminal charge laid in connection with her sister's case.

"I wouldn't mind [Pickton] going to trial for that, too, but that doesn't give me any answers regarding my sister -- or to bring her home," said the Surrey resident.

Murdock was the youngest daughter in a large family from Fort St. James.

"When she was younger, when she was a little girl, we used to put lots of ponytails in her hair. She used to be really cute, very chubby. She was a very intelligent little girl," Pierre recalled.

Murdock was seized from her parents and put into foster care when she was a young teenager, and began to run away. She led a troubled life, had five children, and ended up in the Downtown Eastside.

Pierre said her sister wrote a poem in 1994 that warns people to seek help from friends or God because "all those roads lead to hell."

"When you feel hurt and want to cry... when you feel anger, call on a friend," reads Murdock's poem. "When you are older, with all of those negative thoughts in your mind, pray. Give faith to the creator. He will guide you to a higher power and make you feel that you are glad to ask for guidance from someone who believes in you."

lculbert@png.canwest.com

WOMEN TRACED TO THE FARM

Following an 18-month search of Robert (Willie) Pickton's two Port Coquitlam properties, the Missing Women Task Force located the DNA of at least 30 women whose names are on the police poster of 65 women missing from the Downtown Eastside

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